Recliner chairs provide the ability for the user to vary the angle of a seat assembly, typically between a generally upright sitting position and a reclining position. The motive power for moving the seat assembly from one position to another may be provided by an electric motor or by the user. The present invention relates to recliner chairs that are manually moved by the user.
More specifically, the invention relates to a recliner chair in which a seat assembly of the chair upon which the user sits or reclines is pivotally suspended from a pair of side supports such that the entire seat assembly swings or pivots for adjusting the position thereof between a sitting position and a reclining position.
A recliner chair of the above-described type is known from U.S. Pat. No. 4,790,599 issued to Goldman. The Goldman patent describes a recliner chair including a supporting frame structure having a pair of side members, and a fixed seat structure having a backrest portion, a seat portion, and a footrest portion which are interconnected in a fixed positional relationship with respect to one another. Each of the side members has a raised pivot connecting point, and the seat structure is supported by the pivot points such that the seat swings beneath a pivot axis defined by the pivot points. A trapezoidal-shaped support plate is affixed to each side of the seat structure, and a bar member is welded to each trapezoidal-shaped support plate. Upper ends of the bar members are pivotally connected to pivot pins on the side members of the supporting frame structure. Lower ends of the bar members extend downwardly beyond the support plates to a pair of curved guide members which are connected in fixed positions to the frame side members and extend in a front-to-back direction along the sides of and at a lower vertical level than the lower surface of the seat portion. A rod or bolt is connected to the lower end of each bar member and extends through a curved guide slot in the guide member. The rod or bolt engages a threaded knob. When the user adjusts the position of the seat structure, the rod or bolt slides along the curved guide slot and the guide member provides connecting support and stability to the recliner structure. Once the seat structure is in the desired position, the knobs are tightened to hold the seat structure in position.
In the recliner chair disclosed by Goldman, the knobs are located below the vertical level of the lower surface of the seat portion of the seat structure. Accordingly, a user seated in the chair may find it difficult or awkward to reach the knobs without sitting forward and/or leaning over the side members of the frame structure, particularly if the user has relatively short arms.